I visited Devil’s Punchbowl Conservation Area a few years ago. It was late in the day with very little daylight left. I promised I’d return for a better look.
Fast forward a few years. The first real hiking of the season came on March 16, 2016. After a grueling, wet, muddy and foggy jaunt along the Bruce Trail, further south of Devil’s Punchbowl, I made my way back after a quick lunch.
It nearly wasn’t to be. When I drove by the parking lot the first time, it was so dense with fog that the waterfall could not be seen from any of the viewing areas. During lunch, the rain came down in buckets and it was a tough decision whether to jump back on the QEW and head home or give the waterfall another chance.
Devil’s Punchbowl
However, the rain subsided and the fog broke away just enough for at least some visibility. The mud and high water did not allow access into the bowl area for a closeup look at the base. Perhaps, another return will happen later in the season…
The main waterfall is an impressive 121 feet high. The water source is the Stoney Creek. The Creek is just ten feet wide when it meets up with the edge of the Niagara Escarpment. The trails aren’t official but they are present and you can pretty much walk in the water up to the edge of the waterfall. However, I would highly not recommend doing that.
Devil’s Punchbowl is considered a ribbon waterfall. However, this could change in the future. Maybe, the very near future. Just above the crest of the waterfall, Ridge Road crosses the creek. There is a barricaded area where the road used to run, along the northwest side. You can still walk right up to the edge of the cliff at this point. However, especially in springtime, when nothing has started growing, there is a very obvious fault line where the overhang looks to be ready to plummet.
The area has had its share of real life horror stories. The cliff and waterfall were also featured in the opening sequence of the 2006 movie Silent Hill.
Lower Punch Bowl Falls
Lower Punch Bowl Falls (pictured below) is much shorter at 23 feet in height with the crest an equal 23 feet across. Not quite as magnificent as the waterfall just upstream but beautiful in its own right. The lower falls are classified as a curtain waterfall. This waterfall is typical of many falls along the Niagara Escarpment between Niagara and the Bruce Peninsula.
The Bruce Trail crosses Stoney Creek, just downstream from the lower falls. There are side trails that climb the escarpment to the parking lot and viewing platform at Devil’s Punchbowl Conservation Area. The side trails are maintained and deemed safe but are still rather strenuous, especially when wet.
By the way, parking at the conservation area is $2 per hour. However, in the off-season (when we went) the automated money-taker is turned off and parking is therefore free. The observation platform at the top of the escarpment gives a wide ranging view of the Downtown Hamilton, Ontario Area and Lake Ontario. But, if you go when there’s dense fog, this is not really a feature…
Below is a look at the crest of the Lower Punch Bowl Falls with a high speed exposure.
Below is a look at where the waters of Stoney Creek run beneath the rail tracks. The steps and trail you see above the cement are the Bruce Trail.
Bruce Trail
Below is a typical springtime waterfall tumbling over the Niagara Escarpment. This one is located along the Bruce Trail, close to where the trail crosses Fifty Road. For the morning hike, I entered the trail system via Jones Road and hiked to Fifty Road before turning around. Not much more than 10 kilometres, the constant mud, hills, rain and flooded trail made for a pretty tough trek.
A typical scene along the Bruce Trail in the Stoney Creek Area. The fog actually gave the trail and surrounded hardwood forest a unique look.
Below is a HD video of both the Devil’s Punchbowl and the Lower Punch Bowl Falls from this visit.
